Author: Samantha Lewis

We want to impact more areas, more communities, more people and more families.What we do is successful, it works!

We recently received a small amount of funding to allow us to hire a fundraising manager. This has allowed the rest of the team to focus on our girls, instead of finances that keep the charity going! This has allowed our team to have more time so that we can now apply for funding to expand!
With extra lottery funding will help us to impact more communities, support more families and ensure no one feels lost during Cancer treatment!

Below is a short video to show you exactly how we support our ladies and how we keep them in a positive place. Thanks to the National Lottery we are now able to link with local businesses and organisations, in communities around our current groups!

The Sam’s Diamonds Gauntlet was our new hilarious fundraising event this year. It was an obstacle race with real Gladiators! Three teams ran 5K taking on giant inflatables, foam, slides, water, mud and Gladiator challenges!

All of our teams did an amazing job. There were plenty of laughs throughout each obstacle along with plenty of banter!! With the amount of apprehension shown before the event we can honestly say you all did yourselves proud. All teams said that they would definitely do it again! Everyone received their Sam’s Diamonds T. shirt, a sense of achievement and plenty of funny memories as they left with smiles on their faces! Well done everyone and thank you so much for your support!

Sam’s Diamonds Cancer Support

Charity Catwalk

Saturday 24th June 2017

In an attempt to raise self esteem and confidence within our ladies, they were asked if they would take part in a catwalk event. Those who were up for the challenge, placed their demons aside in an attempt to show their Cancer who was the boss! Cancer can often strip our ladies of pride and dignity due to all of the treatment they undertake. We were determined to fix this.

We arranged for 20 of our ladies along with their children (if they wished to), to strut their stuff along the catwalk, holding their heads high and showing everyone that their cancer diagnosis was not going to hold them back.

Nerves were felt on the run up to the event, which can only be expected when you put yourself out of your comfort zone. We all supported each other and reassured anyone who began to self doubt themselves.

In the morning the ladies were treated to a make over from our friends at The Chillout Spa in Knowsley. Our ladies were truly pampered and treated with so much respect and empathy from the staff there, that we will always be truly thankful. With hair and make up done our ladies truly felt a million dollars!! For some it was their first hair cut since chemo and it was truly celebrated. We left the spa and headed up to the event.

We have to give a massive thanks to Marks and Spencer for allowing our ladies to enter the store and choose their own outfits for the catwalk, once again they were made to feel at ease and assisted by the high standard of customer service offered there. Marks and Spencer were kind enough to supply the clothes for our ladies making them once again feel comfortable and beautiful. We also have to give a huge thank you for Tesco for kitting out our children for the cat walk too. They looked super cool as I’m sure you will agree from the photos. Not only did our Diamonds love the event but so did the kids! All models grew in confidence and self esteem and some of our ladies said they were floating for days after……job done, mission accomplished!

We owe a massive thanks to those who supported the event behind the scenes too, without whom it wouldn’t have been the success that it was!! Thank you to all of our entertainment guests and our stall holders who also supported the event, you are truly amazing!

MONDAY 1ST MAY 2017

Our friends at The Pool of Life invited us to their annual gala called Dragons and Flowers! The whole event was to raise funds for Water aid and Pool of Life.

Pool of Life is a registered charity (registration No. 1111599) and was the first established dragon boat team for breast cancer survivors in the UK. The team was set up in 2004, under the guidance and support of Liverpool-based Amathus Dragon Boat Club, to help raise breast cancer awareness and demonstrates that women and men living with breast cancer can lead full and active lives. Sam’s Diamonds works in partnership with The Pool of Life by encouraging our Diamonds to give it a go and improve their overall fitness. Quite a few of the ladies who already attended are also Diamonds now too!

The weather was kind to us and there was lots of fun and frivolity down at Liverpool Watersports Centre. 16 teams took part this year, representing a wide range of organisations (gyms, NHS departments, sports groups, charity organisations and local businesses). Each team took part in 3 races and their two fastest times determined which teams made it through to the ‘Major’ and ‘Minor’ finals.

We invited Oncologist Dr Sripadam down to be on our team and he didn’t let us down! Sam’s Diamonds team consisted of Diamonds and Diamond’s partners and friends. We did surprisingly well and thoroughly enjoyed the camaraderie and banter on the day! We didn’t win a trophy but we were all winners on the day!

Gala 24th Sept 2016

On Saturday 24th September Sam’s Diamonds were honoured to be the charity of choice for this year’s Widnes Rotary Club Gala. Over 350 tickets were sold for the spectacular evening held in the Select Stadium, Widnes. With raffles and auctions and some amazing prizes, The Rotary Club managed to raise £9,000 for Sam’s Diamonds. We thank the Rotary Club for all of their efforts and for making the night so special.

This year we took 19 ladies away to Mountain View, Penmaenmawr, North Wales. From Friday to Sunday our ladies were involved in various workshops including crafts, mindfulness, Tai chi, Pilates, laughter classes and many more. This weekend is always looked forward to as an escape for our ladies. Many issues are addressed through peer support and group discussions. Special friendships are made and confidence and motivation is regained.

On Saturday 7th May 2016 some of the Diamonds and their friends decided to take on the Cancer Research Pretty Muddy course at Victoria Park in Warrington. They did it!! After many hilarious mud and water fights they finished the race looking a right mess! Well done to all who took part and the organisers for a fab day!

On Sunday 15th May we completed our annual Race for Life Walk at Delamere Forest. Ten of our ladies completed the walk. For some it was seen as their full stop at the end of treatment, resulting in a demonstration of just how strong they are and proof that Cancer did not knock them down!! It was a beautiful, yet emotional day full of determination and grit! All of the girls supported each other all the way around. Some ladies walked with their children too adding to their motivation to complete the course! We followed this with a wonderful family BBQ on the grass, where our families got to mix and the kids got to play together. We need to remember that it is not just our ladies who go through this, our families do too! This is a great family support event that we repeat each year.